On average, how many items can we hold in short-term memory?

The total capacity of short-term memory is fairly limited. Experts believe that you can hold approximately seven items in short-term memory for about 20 to 30 seconds. This capacity can be stretched somewhat by using memory strategies such as chunking, which involves grouping related information into smaller “chunks.”

In a famous paper published in 1956, psychologist George Miller suggested that the capacity of short-term memory for storing a list of items was somewhere between five and nine. Today, many memory experts believe that the true capacity of short-term memory is probably closer to the number four.

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Dr. Lonna Denny’s passion in life is to help people enjoy the best health possible so they can enjoy the best life possible. Opening the San Francisco Spine Pain Relief Center, a Denny Chiropractic Corp. in 2002 gave her the opportunity to help people recover from their injuries and get back to what they enjoy doing. Since then she has helped countless people including many professional athletes, recover from injuries to the spine and extremities using chiropractic Diversified Technique, Active Release Techniques, and the cold laser.